Arnone's Little Italy - Orange

Hello it's DanGarion from Eat In OC again with a new restaurant review. We go to the Target in the city of Orange a lot. And there have been a number of times I've contemplated going to the "hole in the wall" Italian place right next to it, but never did. Little did I know that Arnone's Little Italy isn't a hole in the wall after all. Arnone's is located in a small strip mall in the same parking lot as Target, the amazing thing is that Arnone's is actually huge inside; it's as big as some chain Italian restaurants. It even has a full bar! When we entered we were immediately greeted by one of the owners, who greeted us saying, "Ah there you are, we were waiting for you!". I got a kick out of the comment; I like people with a sense of humor. We were seated immediately since it was still early there weren't many people eating dinner yet. Our waitress arrived shortly after us seating and took our orders. Mrs. DanGarion ordered the Penne Arrabbiata ($12.95), while I ordered the Spaghetti with meatballs ($15.95), something I don't normally get when I'm out). Each meal also comes with your choice of soup or salad. I went for the cream of bell pepper soup, while the Mrs. had a salad with vinaigrette. Along with entrees we got an order of garlic bread ($3.00). The cream of bell pepper soup was pretty good. I'd never had such a soup in the past, and the closest soup I'd had to something like it was Campbell's Soup, Cream of Chicken Soup. But this soup was a lot better than that. It had a light taste of cream with just a hint of bell pepper. The only thing I would have changed in it was maybe for it to be a little thicker, but it had a good not overpowering flavor that got me ready for my meal course. Mrs. DanGarion's salad was just a normal dinner salad, made with mixed greens. The garlic bread was very basic, fresh sandwich bread cut and baked with garlic butter and parmiggiano cheese, it wasn't over done which was good. My spaghetti was very good, fresh tasting meat sauce with hints of basil along with 2 juicy meatballs that were just a little smaller then a pool ball. The servings are huge, hence the reason I took nearly half of the pasta home with me. The Penne Arrabbiata was made with a spicy tomato sauce also mixed with herbs and garlic. My wife liked it but thought it was a little spicy. I had a taste and the spicy tasted like a hint of red pepper flakes that would linger and then catch up with you as you swallowed. They also serve rolls which are freshly made, didn't get a taste of them since we had the garlic bread. Service was great, both our waitress and the bus boy took great care of us and made sure our drinks were filled throughout our entire meal. The atmosphere doesn't make you feel like you are in a strip mall; they have done a good job to take you away into what could be a great family meal. I also found this commercial of their's online while I was researching them. Arnone's Little Italy - MySpace Page 2143 N Tustin St Orange, CA 92865 (714) 974-7411

Tony's Little Italy Pizza

Having just won the 2007 AOL City Guide Dining Out Contest for the Best Pizza in Orange County I really wasn’t sure what to think. Many times, when a restaurant wins an award as voted by the “locals” it usually screams out mediocre at best, but I was willing to give Tony’s Little Italy Pizza a try. Hotly debated about the authenticity of their deep dish pizza on Chowhound, was there any debate about what to get? I have read mixed things about Tony’s but mostly positive. The restaurant is very small and is adorned with wall to wall Chicago sports team memorabilia. There is even a hand painted overhead picture of Wrigley Field to help get you into that Wrigleyville state of mind. I ordered a Canadian Bacon and Mushroom Stuffed Pizza. This is the classic Chicago style deep dish pizza. The crust was a nice golden brown and had a nice crunch on both the bottom and sides. There was also a distinct buttery flavor to the crust. When I asked the owner if they used butter in their dough, my query was quickly cast aside. The bottom crust is a fairly thick layer upon which mounds of cheese are layered. The toppings are then placed on the top of cheese. I was sort of dismayed by the amount of toppings that were placed on the pizza. For a pizza of this magnitude, with its thick crust and huge amounts of cheese, a fairly substantial amount of toppings should be added to balance out the pizza. Sadly this was not the case. The Canadian Bacon was sliced pretty thing and was hit and miss on the pizza, some slices had a good amount of it while others had barely of whisper of any. The use of fresh mushrooms was nice to see. I am not particularly fond of the canned mushrooms that some places use. Again, the rather meager amount of toppings seemed to get lost in the huge pool of cheese. The toppings are then layered with tomato sauce and once the pizza is finished cooking a light sprinkling of parmesan finishes everything off. The tomato sauce had a nice acidic kick to it and the perfect amount of sauce was placed atop the pizza. I could taste both oregano and basil mixed into the sauce which added a nice herbal punch. This pizza must be eaten in small bites. With the huge amounts of cheese on it, I almost choked several times when big melted cheese balls got stuck in my throat. Now I know what a cat feels like when hacking up hair balls. I think the addition of more toppings would help alleviate this problem. The large pizza is pretty substantial. You could probably make 3-4 meals out of pretty easily. Overall this is a pretty good pizza. I’m not sure if I would go out of my way to eat here, but if I was in the neighborhood and felt like having pizza this would be a great option. Tony’s Little Italy Pizza 1808 N. Placentia Avenue, Unit B Placentia, CA 92870 (714) 528-5159